Main Engine Cut Off

Tom Mueller, Founder and CEO of Impulse Space, joins me to catch up on the company’s progress and plans—3 Mira missions flown, Helios soon to fly, $525M raised, new defense contracts, a lunar lander concept, and a new Colorado facility.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced a sweeping roadmap change to the Artemis program this morning—seemingly cancelling the EUS, Gateway, and all SLS upgrades, and instead pursuing the once-and-future annual launch cadence of SLS.

Loren Grush, of Bloomberg, joins me to talk about SpaceX’s acquisition of xAI, its preparation for a potential IPO, Blue Origin’s cancellation of New Shepard and their recent momentum, and the delay to Artemis II following its first wet dress rehearsal.

Artemis II is on the pad, and I can’t stop thinking about it. So I guess listen to me think in the open? Also, a ton of Blue Origin news—the next flight of New Glenn will feature a flown booster, they’ve announced constellation plans under the name TeraWave, and Tory Bruno has left ULA to join the team at Blue.

Casey Dreier of The Planetary Society joins me to talk about the NASA FY2026 budget, the early days of the Administrator Isaacman era, and how we feel going into Artemis II.